(Houston) Nov. 20, 2019 – The Girls Inc. of Greater Houston Board of Directors has hired Treopia Cannon as Chief Executive Officer to lead its operations and to significantly increase the number of girls served in the Houston area by leveraging existing school partnerships; expanding programming to new schools; and adding more day camp offerings.
Founded in 1996, Girls Inc. of Greater Houston currently offers local education enrichment programs to 600 Houston-area girls ages 6 – 18 in 12 area schools in underserved communities; and at the organization’s spring and summer day camps and other special events. Girls Inc.’s trained program facilitators deliver a hands-on, research-based curriculum to help girls overcome economic, gender-based and social barriers to success. Girls Inc. of Greater Houston has committed to serving 500 more girls by the end of 2021.
Girls Inc. programs include topics such as Project Literacy, anti-bullying, leadership, teamwork, personal finance, social media literacy and STEAM (Science, Technology, Arts, Engineering and Math).
And, the programs work: Eighty nine percent of Girls Inc. participants find science and math interesting and 92 percent believe they are capable of solving real-life problems. Girls Inc. participants also graduate high school and enroll in college at significantly higher numbers than the average.
“Our mission is to inspire all girls to be strong, smart and bold,” said Girls Inc. of Greater Houston board chair Michele Pilibosian. “Treopia’s proven track record of leadership in both the non-profit and for-profit sectors made her the right leader to take our organization to the next level as we expand our reach to equip more girls in the Houston area to live independent, healthy and successful lives.”
Earlier this year, the organization received a two-year, $167,000 growth grant from the national Girls Inc. organization. With these funds, Girls Inc. of Greater Houston is significantly expanding its programs and activities in the Houston area to serve more girls with impact and to inspire the next generation of strong, smart and bold women.
“I am honored to join Girls Inc. of Greater Houston and to build on the organization’s success in helping Houston-area girls realize their potential and exercise their rights,” Cannon said.
Cannon most recently served for three years as CEO of YWCA Lake County in Gurnee, IL where she leveraged new and existing local partnerships to boost funding and expand the donor base; implemented cost-saving initiatives; launched an annual Economic Empowerment Summit; and strengthened the group’s racial justice platform. Prior to her CEO role at YWCA, she served on its board of directors for four years. Previously, Cannon worked in the banking industry for 25 years.